Side By Side
by Lights of the Aurora
Summary: When Lyra was young, she and Roger delved into the secrets of Jordan, while exploring the rooftops and underground of Jordan College. She uncovers more than she bargained for, and soon, innocent adventures turn into a mission alongside her best friend. Disclaimer: I do not own His Dark Materials.
1. The Jordan River Bridge

"Now!" The attack squad, led by Lyra's friend, Hugh Lovat, comprising of a dozen Kitchen boys from Jordan and St. Michael's College charged out from their hiding place on the docks, yelling and throwing mud at the Costa's narrowboat. Lyra's reserve squad still hid behind their hiding place, silently cheering on their allies. After a few minutes of yelling and throwing, Ma Costa and the others began streaming out to chase them away. Lyra spotted her gyptian friend, Billy Costa, stifling a laugh at his bewildered expression. The children retreated, still throwing mud and shouting, drawing the family away from the boat. Billy's brother, Tony Costa, led the family off the boat to chase away the children.

"Now!" screamed Lyra, and her reserve squad streamed out from their hiding place and ran for the boat. By the time the Costas realized what was happening, Lyra and the others had raided the boat, and the last two on had untied the boat from the dock and pushed it off. Lyra's friends were laughing and shrieking at their success, desperately trying to get the boat away from the docks, some even leaping into the water to push. The various children crowed in delight, their allies on land cheering them on. Lyra's friend Simon Parslow, a cousin of Roger's, stood at the wheel. "Stand watch!" she told Simon, who heard her over the shouting and nodded at her. Lyra felt like crowing herself, but she reminded herself of the mission. "Spread out and find the bung!" she shouted at the others. Still crowing, the children fanned out, some racing below deck, others streaming around the deck and hooting and shouting at the gyptians, who were frantically readying smaller rowing boats to chase after them. Lyra grabbed Roger and ran below deck. Lyra had been certain that the bung would sink the ship. Look for it, and whoever finds it first can sink the boat, she'd told her troops. Now she and Roger tore through the cabins, hooting and crowing all the while.

After a few minutes of fruitless searching, Lyra rounded up everyone and headed above deck. Tom and Simon, the lookouts, were shouting and pelting rocks and mud at the gyptian boats that were catching up on their. Their St. Michael allies on land were desperately trying to slow down the boats, some leaping the water to pull an unlucky gyptian overboard.

Lyra ducked behind a wooden crate as a stone went sailing over her head, either thrown from the gyptian children or misfired from their land allies. She rummaged in her pockets for the lightweight stones she always kept there. Tossing a few to Roger, she took deadly aim and managed to knock a gyptian off his boat.

"C'mon, I can already see the gyptian kids coming!" shouted Roger.

Lyra was still rummaging through the gyptian boat they had hijacked. She had originally planned to find the bung on the boat and then swim ashore with her friends after the boat sank.

"There en't no bung, Lyra!" shouted Tom, the one who was supposed to be on the lookout.

"Shut it, Tom, and watch out for the gyptians!" shouted Lyra.

"The gyptians're here!" shouted Heidi, another raider on the boat, the young scullery maid, the only other girl there besides Lyra.

"Abandon ship!" Lyra seized Roger and pushed him off the edge of the boat, jumping off seconds later. All the other raiders leapt off, as the gyptian troops clambered on from their other boats. All ten raiders, including Lyra, went tripping over each other to get ashore first, all the while crowing with triumph. They sped down the narrow lanes and ducked behind the gate of Jordan College. They had to be careful, for the children of Gabriel College had recently declared war on them, and had been leaping unexpectedly out from behind solid walls.

They had made a temporary truce with the children of St. Michael's College, however, in order to raid the gyptian boat belonging to the Costa family.

"That was brilliant, Lyra, that was," gasped Terry, the only son of one of the Kitchen maids.

"We never even found the bung!" said Simon, who was the second son of the serving maid.

"We'll go back again," said Lyra confidently. "Someday, we'll hijack it and sail it to Abingdon. Let's meet up here again before noon and we can nick something from the market to eat." And so they dispersed.

"C'mon Roger, let's go up to the Library roof," said Lyra.

That day, there was a conference going on in the library, so they couldn't climb through the window. Instead, Lyra scaled the left side of the building and Roger the right. At the top, Lyra impatiently seized Roger's sleeve and started running across the narrow bridge to the chimney.

Normally, if there was a tutorial going on in the library, Lyra and Roger would take to hooting like owls outside of the windows. Lately, however, she had been caught by the Master twice and forbidden to climb the rooftops ever again.

"Lyra, how come we've never gone under Jordan College?" asked Roger when he'd reached the chimney.

"My uncle once said that there's as much College below ground as there is above it," said Lyra. "Maybe we'll go and check it out tonight."

"I thought there was a dinner at the High Table that the Master forced you to join," said Roger doubtfully.

"Only tea with Lord Asriel and a couple of Scholars in the Senior Common Room. And anyway, girls en't allowed at the High Table, in case you've forgotten. Hopefully I'll be able to get away pretty soon," said Lyra decisively. "We'll go tonight. Meet me at that underground library we once found at around ten."

After been escorted to the Senior Common Room by Mrs. Lonsdale, along with many threats, Lyra slumped mutinously in her chair while the senior scholars chatted over the tea, and Lord Asriel, the Master, and the Chaplain discussed politics. Lyra understood none of it. One thing, however, was abundantly clear. She was not getting out of there anytime soon.

"Lyra, child, sit up!"

Lyra raised her head. The Master was looking at her sternly. She straightened and took to glowering at them all, although she could have sworn that even the Chaplain was concealing a smile.

She caught snippets of conversation coming from her uncle, the Master, and the Chaplain, all of whom were discussing the Magisterium.

"The north —"

"Bolvangar —"

"Svalbard —"

"Panserbjørn —"

"The Oblation Board —"

Lyra frowned. Svalbard. Where had she heard that word before? And then it hit her. Once, a Jordan Scholar had been teaching her geography about the north and the south. Svalbard was in the north, where the ice bears lived.

But she had seen the word Panserbjørn somewhere else. She and Roger had found another library, underneath the library building. The shelves were stocked with forbidden books. Although Lyra hadn't taken much interest in the actual books, she had seen the name _Panserbj__ø__rn_ on a book at a top shelf labeled _Svalbard. Svalbard _was a long shelf at the top of a bookshelf labeled _North. Bolvangar _had been the shelf directly underneath _Svalbard, _also on the _North _shelf. Lyra and Roger had been using the underground library as a secret hideout and invented many games there. Thousands of shelves lined the old library, creating very convenient ladders which Lyra and Roger sometimes climbed in order to reach the giant, hanging chandelier, on which they often sat during rainy days, when they could not go outside.

Never before had she thought of other underground rooms, however. Lyra contented herself by exploring all the rooftops except for the Sheldon rooftop and rummaging through old rooms inside the College. She and her companions spent their days waging war on the gyptians, brick burners' children, and townies, sometimes making temporary truces with the other college children. They had thoroughly explored the College rooms, Jericho, Port Meadow, and every other street or lane alike. Her dæmon, Pantalaimon, always at her side, accompanied her everywhere, sometimes as a squirrel, a bird, an owl. They had even tried rummaging through the gyptian boats, though their search yielded nothing.

The hidden political currents under the College, however, were invisible to her, just as the wars between the colleges were invisible to the adults. The complicated network of feuds, treaties, raids, truces, and battles between the Oxforder children was all invisible to the grown-ups of the College. The young servants and the servants' children of one college banded together and attacked another. But if a townie attacked a colleger, any colleger, all the colleges banded together and battled the townies. The brick-burners' children, however, were hated by townies and collegers alike. The colleges and townies would make temporary truces and raid the Claybeds, attacking the brick-burners' children. The gyptians, who lived on long, narrow canal boats, came only in the spring and autumn. Lyra would lead Roger and the other Kitchen boys to find the Costa's boat the next time they came, during autumn.

Then there were the other children of rich College adults, such as Lord Asriel, who was at that moment conversing with an elderly scholar. Another child, Lily, who was only a month older than Lyra, was the seemingly sole leader of a small band of rich college children, who spent all their time dutifully studying with scholars, whom Lyra always made a point of ignoring. They rarely saw each other, for Lily took piano lessons while Lyra explored the rooftops. But she saw the other rich children of the College frequently enough to know that she did not like them at all.

"Excuse me, Master," interrupted Lyra, "but might I leave? I think I might vomit." She made a point of looking ill so the Master would let her off.

"Very well, Lyra," said the Master, looking mildly concerned. "Mind you behave yourself in the halls."

Lyra stood up immediately, nearly overturning the table, remembering only at the doorway to blurt out a hasty "Goodbye." Eager to go outside, she nearly knocked over Bernie the pastry cook as she took the shortcut through the Kitchens. Just as she ran past the gates of Jordan College, Roger and two of the other Kitchen boys ran up to her.

"Lyra! They says there's a couple of Gabriel collegers down by the Jordan River," said Roger excitedly.

And so they took off, racing across Port Meadow, led by Lyra. Sure enough, when they reached the riverside, five Gabriel collegers and three Jordan collegers were wrestling in the water. Lyra recognized Heidi, the only other high-born colleger girl in their band. At that time, she was dragging a Gabriel colleger towards the deep waters at the center of the river, both of them spluttering and thrashing. Lyra flattened herself as a stone whizzed over her head. On the other side of the river were all her allied troops running towards them, and the only way to reach them was the narrow Jordan River Bridge, which was now being blocked by the Gabriel college children.

Lyra palmed a stone and raced towards the bridge, closely followed by Roger, Heidi, and Terry. When she reached the bridge, Lyra seized an Gabriel colleger by the scruff of his neck and shoved him over the side of the bridge, stopping only to listen for the satisfying splash and the string of curses that followed. Although the Gabriel collegers outnumbered them, Lyra knew that at least a quarter of them couldn't swim very well.

Pantalaimon screeched a high warning cry, and before she knew it, a colleger had grabbed Lyra and pinned her to the side of the bridge. With the small of her back against the wooden fence of the bridge, Lyra kicked and thrashed, to no avail. Pantalaimon turned into a wildcat and leapt on the colleger's leopard dæmon.

The colleger shoved her over the side of the bridge, and Lyra fell fifteen feet through the air, landing with a tumultuous splash directly at the center of a small band of Gabriel collegers. They immediately seized her by the ankles and started dragging her down, towards the bottom of the river. Lyra sucked in a breath and started kicking wildly. She managed to loosen their holds and paddled away underneath the bridge. On the other side, three colleger, all her own, were dangling over the edge of the bridge, holding on tightly to the rim of the fence. One let go and fell with a splash. It was Roger. Together, they swam towards the center of the bridge. Twenty feet above them, the struggle was still continuing. Oxford and Jordan collegers alike tumbled from the bridge and resumed their momentarily discontinued fight in the water. Crows of triumph and battle cries filled the air, seemingly driving the battle forward. Lyra splashed towards the far side of the river, with Roger and a pack of Gabriel collegers right behind her. Salcilia, Roger's dæmon, screeched and flapped her wings in the faces of the other dæmons.

When Lyra finally reached the part of the river where the bridge was just a few feet above her head, she kicked off the water and managed to grasp the edge of the wall of the bridge with both hands. She swung her legs upwards and managed to pull herself until she was lying on her stomach on the narrow wall of the fence. Lyra pushed off hard with her foot and landed hard on the bridge deck. She grabbed a fallen stone (hers had been lost sometime during the underwater tussle) and took aim at a Gabriel colleger who was also trying to pull himself back onto the bridge. The stone hit with a sharp crack and the colleger let go with a curse.

Suddenly, an Gabriel boy seized from behind and attempted to shove her over the bridge again. Lyra twisted out of his grasp and sent him tumbling towards the water. Pan, a hawk now, screeched and landed on the boy's cat dæmon, knocking it over. Just then, an idea struck her.

"Over here!" shouted Lyra, waving frantically towards her allies and gesturing towards the other side of the river.

"Coward!" screamed a Gabriel girl with black hair and ragged clothing triumphantly.

Lyra turned just in time to duck as the girl's stone whizzed over her head and hit another child on the left shoulder. She led her troops across the bridge and to the part of the meadow where they had secretly stashed dozens of stones. Each child seized four or five stones and they opened fire on the bridge, hitting Gabriel and Jordan collegers alike. When the Jordan collegers realized what was going on, they ran to join their allies on the other side of the river. The Gabriel collegers attempted to follow them but were beaten back by a volley of flying stones. They chased the Gabrielers all the way to the other side of the bridge and through Port Meadow until they all scattered.

Lyra led her troops, victorious and crowing triumphantly back to the bridge, where they fished stones out of the riverbanks to resupply their secret stash. She was completely soaked now, and yet laughing along with everyone else.

Later, Lyra and Roger climbed up on the Pilgrim's rooftop and sat on the narrow bridge, eating a split pie and devising their second invasion plan. They had dozens of secret rendezvous spots on the rooftop, and the chimney concealed them from everyone below their current spot.

"We can't attack them through Port Meadow again," Roger was saying with his mouth full. "They'll have hijacked the bridge by now."

"What if we ally with St. Michael's again?" suggested Lyra. "Then we'd have enough people to raid them."

Roger took out a roughly sketched map of the arena and pointed at the river. "Lyra, look, there's more than one bridge. If they haven't gotten them all, we can cross the river and find allies there."

"Lyra, get down here now." The Master's manservant, Cousins was an old enemy of Lyra's, but she had never seen him look so gleeful before. "The Master wants to see you." He stuck his head out of the window in an attempt to try and see Lyra. He jerked his head back inside what Lyra deliberately dropped an acorn on him.

Lyra sighed mutinously and slid down the face of the roof. "What's the Master want me for?" she asked Cousins, taking care to glare at him scornfully.

"No idea," replied Cousins sardonically. He pulled open the door to a study and bowed mockingly at Lyra.

Inside, the Master was pacing to and fro. When he saw Lyra, his expression seemed to become graver, if that was possible. "Lyra, child, what have you been up to lately?"

"Just studying," replied Lyra unblinkingly. Pantalaimon became a deer and lowered his head until his antlers touched the Master's dæmon.

"That's all?"

"Yeah," replied Lyra, meeting the Master's gaze stolidly.

"Do you still climb dangerous rooftops?" questioned the Master.

Lyra hesitated. She had no idea if the Master had seen her doing so lately.

The Master sighed. "Lyra, child, do you understand that one day you are meant to grown up and become a young lady?"

A nod of the head.

"It may seem now that it will never happen, but one day you'll have to leave Jordan College to receive a proper education…"

Lyra couldn't imagine leaving Jordan, but she saw now that arguing with the Master was not likely to speed up the conversation. So instead she nodded again.

"Very well, Lyra. Take care, and enjoy your childhood for as long as possible." The Master motioned for her to go.

Lyra hesitated. Somehow, the Master's last words seemed to directly contradict his other statement. "Goodbye, Master," Lyra finally said. Pan turned into a cat and leapt into Lyra's arms, sticking his tongue out at Cousins' dæmon as they passed.

Lyra finished her supper by seven and managed to slip out of her room when Mrs. Lonsdale wasn't looking. She and Roger had agreed to meet up at the underground library to continue planning their invasion. Lyra took care that the old Librarian wouldn't see her as she pushed aside the back shelf and opened the secret trapdoor. After she had pushed the shelf back to its original place and shut the trapdoor over her head, Lyra descended the steps to the underground room. Sure enough, the chandelier was lit and Roger was swinging on top of it.

Lyra climbed up to the hanging chandelier by stepping on the shelf directly underneath it. Roger grabbed her by the elbow and helped haul her up. Pantalaimon, an owl now, fluttered up beside her to perch atop one of the elaborate ornaments decorating the rope that held the chandelier. The rope was several feet long, and the chandelier several yards wide. Lyra slid down on her stomach on the smooth, dipping glass. The light bulbs glowed with anbaric light, illuminating the folded map that Roger drew out.

"Lyra, look, there're two other bridges on either side of the main bridge, and the other college is on the other side of the river. If we ally with them, it won't matter if St. Michael's are allied with the Gabrielers."

"Alright, I'll call a vote the next time we meet," said Lyra. The usual code for voting when it came to Jordan collegers was everybody yelling and stomping when they heard the idea that they liked.

"Lyra, I wonder if there're other underground libraries like this," said Roger.

"Probably not," said Lyra decisively. "One library is enough, and besides, if there were other rooms, they'd probably contain stuff much more interesting than books."

"I wonder why these books aren't stored in the public Library," mused Roger, shielding his eyes from the strong anbaric light.

"Probably because they're forbidden." Lyra's eyes kindled with excitement. "Imagine what could be in here!"

"You never was the reading type," said Roger doubtfully. "Why are you so interested in books all of a sudden?"

"Because they're forbidden!" They en't allowed in the Jordan Library, which means that there must be something about these books that the Master doesn't want anybody to know about." Lyra leaned over the glass to look down at the row and rows of bookshelves. "Wouldn't it be simply brilliant to find other places like this?"

Salcilia, a sparrow now, chirped her disagreement. But now Roger's eyes were alight with curiosity. "What if the other rooms had secret passageways too? Remember that corridor we once found behind that giant tapestry?" Once, Lyra and Roger had been running from the Porter and had accidentally backed up against a large tapestry and discovered a hiding place behind it. Later, they'd realized that the corridor led to the Kitchens.

"We could map the entire underground Jordan, just like we did the rooftops!" said Lyra excitedly.

"Better think of a way to cross the river first, though," said Roger. And so the underground was momentarily forgotten as Lyra and Roger bent over the map.


	2. Underground Secrets

**Author's Note:**

**Dschslava: Thanks for the correction. Hope you enjoyed my story!**

"Lyra, I can't help raid the main bridge, Lyra," said Roger as he and Lyra sat in the branches of the apple tree.

"How come? We need as many as we can."

"There's a big party coming. The servants have been talking about it for weeks. I forgot to tell you, we have to help with the extra preparation and cooking."

"What's that party for?"

"No idea, but a bunch of important Scholars are coming, maybe even Lord Asriel."

"When is it? The party?"

"Dunno. Couple weeks or so, I suppose. We'll be pretty busy.'

"Can you at least attend the voting today?"

"Lyra! What do you think you're doing?"

"Oh damn," whispered Lyra. It was the youngest Scholar who'd most frequently caught Lyra plucking the apples off the Garden trees. Grabbing Roger's sleeve, Lyra leapt down from the branched she'd been sitting on. "Come on!" Together they dashed through the Gardens until they reached the gate. Lyra, tossing the stolen apple to Roger, clambered over it first, ignoring the shouted protests by the Scholar. Roger handed Lyra the apple through the bars and clambered after her."

They tore through the grounds, the Scholar shaking his fist and yelling threats into the air behind them. Finally, they collapsed on the ground in a dingy little alleyway. The children had many out-of-the-way meeting places, such as secret corridors and rooms inside the college, little clearings in the forest, bridges on the river, places at the meadow, and many more, but they'd all agreed to meet here in this alley to vote. Already, a couple of children had gathered with their dæmons and were waiting with expectant expressions.

Soon, more and more children filed in with their dæmons into the dark, narrow alleyway. Collegers, servants, servants' children, and many more of Lyra's ragamuffin friends. Lyra and a few of her friends helped count the numbers until each and every one of them had arrived.

"Alright, shut it!" bellowed Lyra. "Who wants to ally with the other colleges and storm the bridge together?" There was a collective roar as almost everybody started yelling and stomping. "And who wants to retreat and surrender the bridge?" A small group of children cheered for that one.

"Alright, fine. When should we carry out the invasion?" asked a tall servant's child. Lyra recognized him. He was notorious for being able to pick any kind of lock.

"It can't be soon," piped up a little servant boy. "There's a big party happening next week and all the servants have got to help out."

"Alright, what about after the party then? What day's the party on?"

"Friday," put in another college. "I've heard 'em talking about it."

"Alright, alright, but we'll need time to plan the invasion," said another child. "Meet here again on Saturday? Same time same place?"

"Fine." There was a general rumble of approval.

And so they dispersed, as each child and dæmon ran off to who knows where. Naturally, Lyra and Roger headed for the marketplace again. This time, Lyra brought a gold dollar that she had saved the last time Lord Asriel had visited. She bought a beefsteak pie with a shilling that she split with Roger. They stayed away from the fruit-sellers, as the apple-seller might still recognize them from last time.

The two of them raced each other back to the rooftops again. Not many children had explored the rooftops like Lyra and Roger had. In fact, Lyra liked to think that she knew the rooftops better than any other colleger. It was she who had discovered the most of the little routes and hiding places. She had never shared any of her other secret rendezvous places on the rooftops with anyone but Roger, though. She liked to consider them her own secret territory. Not many battles were fought on the rooftops, although Lyra had run into other children on the rooftops occasionally.

Lyra and Roger made their way up to the roof again. There was a place they'd found, where one face of the Library roof touched with the face of the Tutorial building and created a sort of valley, hiding them from the outside. It was there that Lyra and Roger spent the rest of the morning, eating their pie, brooding on the upcoming party, and waiting until it was time for Lyra to go to her a history lesson with the young Scholar who'd caught them in the Gardens.

"Do you think Lord Asriel will come to that party?" asked Lyra of Roger.

"Dunno. Probably, though, since all the important folk'll be coming. They say that there'll even be fireworks in the courtyard after dinner at the High Table."

"Fireworks! Wouldn't it be simply spectacular if we could see?"

"We en't allowed in the courtyard during the party, Lyra," said Roger with his mouth full."

"But we could watch from the roof of the Scholar's Tower, couldn't we?" Lyra sat up. She climbed up the inner face of the Tutorial building roof and rested her chin on the narrow ledge. She could already see the courtyard from here, although a few buildings blocked it. If she and Roger placed themselves on the roof of the Scholar's Tower, they could watch everything in the courtyard and yet not be seen by anybody.

Roger had climbed up beside her. "I'll probably be able to sneak out of the Kitchens. It'll be late though. Probably around ten. The dinner'll last from six to eight, there'll be random chatting and meetings and dancing and partying for another two hours, and everyone'll disperse at midnight. Wonder what they're celebrating."

"Who cares?" Lyra slid back down and sat at the bottom of the little valley, right at the space where the two edges of the roofs met. Pantalaimon, an ermine now, suggested they try to watch some of the party indoors.

"What'd we care about the party? I've seen plenty of them. It's the fireworks I want to watch," said Lyra.

"The Master'll probably make you go, Lyra," said Roger darkly.

"What?" Lyra nearly choked on her beefsteak pie. "What's he want me for? I thought you said the party was for important Scholars and such!"

"Lord Asriel'll want to see you. You and a couple of the other high-born college kids'll be expected to chat pleasantly and eat at a little table all to yourselves."

"Well they'll have a hard time catching me," said Lyra defiantly. "I en't going to be caught dead in another party dress like last time, even if I have to hide in the cellar until it's all over."

At the last party, Lyra had been dressed in a long, pale blue skirt and her best patent-leather boots. Mrs. Lonsdale had forced Lyra to wear a red ribbon in her hair as well, along with many threats. She'd sulked for the most part of it, but spied on the Scholars chatting at the High Table with Emma, one of the few high-born children who, in Lyra's opinion, wasn't a complete idiot. Roger had never seen her in a dress, and she hated to think of what he would do if he ever did. She'd have to find someplace to change into her ragamuffin clothes after she left the party.

However, she and Emma had noticed a certain tension among the Scholars. It had started a few months ago, sometime around the winter festivals. New Scholars had started to come, and also important people from the Magisterium. There were private meetings held in the Master's Lodging where voices were sometime raised. All the servants whispered about it, at the gates, in the Kitchens, during working hours.

Being closer to the servants than most high-born children, Lyra was able to pick up things in the Kitchens. Once, Bernie the pastry cook had accidentally let slip that Lord Asriel had something to do with all this. Although Lyra had suspected as much, Bernie had confirmed that there was a feud between the political world, and that her uncle had already taken sides.

Lyra was proud of her uncle, although he sometimes frightened her. She greatly admired and respected him, although she was closer to the servants than she was to her own uncle. Lyra had no interest in the political world yet, as it did not affect her daily life at all. Her only concern was that her uncle was notorious enough to boast about to the other servants.

It was late afternoon when the Scholar finally remembered him lesson with Lyra and caught her in the Kitchens, interrogating the other Kitchen boys about the upcoming party.

"Lyra, girl, it's time for your lesson." The Scholar dragged her away, warning her not to be caught eating apples in the Gardens again. Lyra sat through an hour of dull history on Jordan College, but perked up when he mentioned the underground tunnels that had been built under Jordan several decades ago. Apparently, they led to secret rooms as well, some abandoned, some never even discovered.

"…But of course, most of the rumors about what's stored underground are just stories. The rooms were once used to hold meetings, but all those stories going around about how they were used to store forbidden information are just fairy tales made up by the servant children," the Scholar finished. By now, Lyra was bolt upright, hanging onto every word. Her breathing quickened. What if the Scholar was wrong? The underground library she and Roger had found certainly didn't look boring anymore.

Once, when she had been waiting for Roger on a stormy day, Lyra had gotten bored and flipped through a few of the books. Many of the topics she had found were the ones that the Scholars whispered about, never daring to speak out loud in the open. There were books on the Magisterium, the North, the South, the witch clans, and lots more. Lyra had found one book on a war between the witch clans several decades ago, and for the first time in her life, been interested in it.

But where had these books come from? Some of them dated only a few decades ago. Who had put them there? The library looked like it had been abandoned for years, but the books had to come from somewhere.

"Remember that, Lyra? I'll quiz you about it next time." The Scholar closed his book. Lyra had always dreaded her lessons with him, as the Scholar studied anbaric energy and science, and would often bore Lyra with long descriptions of his most recent experiments. However, he did also study Jordan history, although it mainly consisted of the various Masters and influential Scholars.

"Yes," said Lyra dutifully. In truth, she had remembered nothing except the part about Jordan's secret corridors and underground rooms. Hopefully, he would forget the next time he remembered to teach her, and start going on about anbaric lights again. Lyra couldn't wait to tell Roger what she had heard. The idea that there was more Jordan underground than aboveground had never occurred to her before. The Scholar had said that most of the underground rooms were connected. That meant the underground library must have another entrance leading out. But they would have to wait. The upcoming party was taking up all of the time, and they couldn't waste clear days exploring underground when they could be raiding the bridges.

Occasionally, during rainy days, Lyra would run around in the rain with Roger, or sit atop the chimney on the Scholar's tower and get soaked just to annoy Mrs. Lonsdale. She had paid for that, though, when Mrs. Lonsdale had forced her to take a bath, claiming that the rain was 'filthy.' Lyra would sometimes watch thunderstorms with Roger from inside the safety of a window, watching the brilliant streaks of lightning tear across the sky.

Once, she and Roger had climbed to the tallest tower, the Scholar's Tower, to see what it would be like to watch a thunderstorm so high up. They had come down quickly, though, after she and Roger had nearly frozen their heads off. Lyra had stubbornly refused to come down until she had been forced to admit that she was freezing. Pantalaimon was not eager to make the trip again.

After bidding goodbye to the Scholar, Lyra set off to the Kitchens through the shortcut that she and Roger had found a few months ago. It took her inside what she had always thought to be a solid wall, and past several conference rooms, where she would often overhear through the thin walls bits of conversations. She stopped short in the middle of the corridor when she heard Lord Asriel's name.

"Coming to the party…"

"See to it that he does not…" That was the Master's voice. Lyra knew it well, and now, it was low and urgent.

Lyra cursed to herself, pressing her ear against the wall, desperately trying to hear more.

"Lord Asriel…returning from a new expedition..."

So her uncle was returning from another expedition. It was no surprise to Lyra. Her uncle traveled everywhere, but something was off about this conversation. Most of the time, the Scholars chatted openly about what new project her Uncle Asriel was doing, but why was the Master speaking in a hushed voice as if not anxious to be overheard? Lyra silently debated over a decision. Should she stay and listen to what the Master was saying about Lord Asriel, or hurry and catch Roger before he was sent out again? Impatience won out. Lyra had never been one to care much about politics, and even the surprise of hearing her uncle mentioned was not enough to keep her interested for long. And so she hurried off, not hearing the Masters last sentence, which would instantly have drawn her back. "See to it that Lyra remains ignorant of what is to come."

As she ran silently through the corridor, Lyra's mind went back to the conversation she had overheard. She was almost sure that the 'he' had been Lord Asriel, and that the Master had been speaking. But who was the other person? And why did the Master sound, for the first time she had heard, frightened? Was it possible that her uncle's new expedition had something to do with his concern? When she reached the end of the corridor, Lyra carefully lifted the painting covering the entrance and replaced it after slipping out. She turned through a door into the Kitchen.

It was noisy and brightly lit, stuffed full of people. Lyra smelled fresh baked bread and cinnamon, mixed with cooking meat and a thousand other odors she could not define. Lyra felt her stomach growl. Sometimes Bernie the pastry cook, would hand her a failed tart or leftover cake, if he was in a good mood, and Lyra would split it with Roger, like she did everything. Today, however, everybody was busy preparing for the party, only a day away. She finally found Roger next to the chef, and the two of them managed to slip away unnoticed after a few minutes.

"I can't stay long, Lyra," said Roger nervously, "Or the cook's sure to notice I'm missing. They need everybody in the Kitchen today. The party's tomorrow evening, and we'll probably be working into the night again."

She brought out the pie that she had swiped before leaving the Kitchen and split it with Roger. Over the hot mouthfuls, she told him what the Scholar had told her.

By the time she finished, Roger's eyes were alight with curiosity. "Do you reckon the library could lead to another room, then?"

"I dunno, but we'd better look after we secure the bridge." Lyra finished her pie, licking her fingers. "I heard that Simon and a few others were going to try and ally with some other colleges and bring them to the next meeting. Simon's our best go-between. If anyone can ally with them, it'll be him. I heard his mother knows a few of the older servants. Oh, and one other thing. I heard the Master talking about Lord Asriel…" Lyra retold the conversation to Roger, and he too had no idea what the Master had been talking about, suggesting that she might find out when Lord Asriel came to the party.

Roger finished his pie too. "I've got to go, Lyra, or the cook'll give me another yelling if she notices I'm gone." He stood up.

Lyra spent the rest of the afternoon wandering aimlessly through the Jordan halls, still brooding over what the Scholar had said. Normally, she never took much interest in what the Scholars taught her, and forgot about it within hours. It felt strange to her to desperately try to recall more of the lesson. Most of the time, she ran away whenever the Scholar recalled that he was supposed to quiz her. What had he said? Yes, that Jordan had dozens of interconnecting rooms underground, linked by corridors, and had a central room, once used for holding secret meetings.

Bored out of her mind, Lyra scaled the rooftops again, using her favorite route to the edge, closest to the meadow, to try and scout the enemy on the bridges. The bridges had no figures moving on them, but Lyra was sure that the enemy was hiding nearby. News had leaked out that Jordan was hosting a party, and the other collegers were taking advantage of it. Lyra was planning to lead a raid across the bridge soon, and possibly ally with the collegers on the other side. Hopefully, their history of fighting with the colleges on the other side would make them hesitate to ally with the Gabrielers. Lyra knew that Gabriel had already allied with the townies, because Roger had eavesdropped on them planning together.

By then, Lyra had almost forgotten the conversation she had overheard between the Master and somebody else in the secret corridor, but the thought of Roger brought it back up again. Yes, she would have to find out once Lord Asriel came to visit. Lyra had a lifetime's experience of eavesdropping and knew that she was likely to glean even more information if she acted innocently curious and unconcerned. She had been caught listening at doors before, once by Cousins, and once by Lily, the only daughter of an important Scholar, Lyra's enemy ever since she ratted on Lyra taking her favorite route across the rooftops, an experience Lyra was not eager to relive.

The party was tomorrow, and Mrs. Lonsdale was likely to make her wear her pale blue party dress and the pretty shoes that Emma had agreed to lend her, despite Lyra furiously shaking her head behind Mrs. Lonsdale. Mrs. Lonsdale had fished out Lyra's old red hair ribbon, although Lyra had shoved it at the very bottom of the trunk. Right now, she was probably looking for Lyra so she could give her hair a wash before the party tomorrow.

Emma would be wearing her white party dress, which was even more frilled and laced than Lyra's blue dress, with a pale pink ribbon to match the bows on her dress. She had frequently seen it on Emma's fair hair, a shade lighter than Lyra's, during parties. Lyra had agreed to spy on the Master outside his window after dinner with Emma, in exchange for Emma distracting whichever poor Scholar put in charge of them, so that Lyra could sneak away. Lyra had planned to hide her leather boots behind the curtains next to the entrance to the dining Hall, so that she could grab them after sneaking out. She had no idea how she was going to get out of her dress, but anticipation for the fun they would have on the rooftops put it out of her mind. She and Emma had watched the fireworks from the windows before, when they had sneaked out of the dancing hall at a party one night, bored out of their minds by the endless pleasant chatter.

She recalled the brilliant explosions of gold, silver, green, red, purple, blue, and a thousand other colors. She and Emma had even had a contest to see who could lean the farthest out of the window without falling out. Emma had nearly fallen out of her window laughing when Lyra had jumped suddenly at a particularly loud round of fireworks.

Lyra knew it would be a thousand times better with Roger on the rooftop.

* * *

**Author's Note**

**I am so sorry I haven't updated. School's almost over now, so I'll be able to get the next chapter up much quicker. I know that nothing much happened in this chapter, but I promise the next one will be much more eventful. And if you haven't noticed, I've updated the first chapter and changed the beginning. And for those of you hoping for Lyra/Roger pairing, that won't be happening anytime soon, because I really wanted to capture the innocence and ignorance (?) of Lyra's childhood. I don't want her to grow up so quickly in my story.  
**

**-Aurora**


End file.
